Different techniques are used to determine where to refuel a vehicle. U.S. Pat. No. 7,066,216 to Sato et al. provides a system for allocating fuel stations to movable bodies. The system includes an onboard unit, a station unit and a server. The onboard unit stores and updates information about a movable body. The station unit stores and updates information about a fuel station. The server is connected to the onboard unit and the station unit through networks. The server allocates certain fuel stations to the movable body based on the information about the movable body and the fuel station.
U.S. Pat. No. 6,691,025 to Reimer provides a system for monitoring fuel consumption and optimizing refueling of a vehicle. The system includes a fuel level sensor designed to be mounted on a fuel tank. The fuel sensor has a transducer for generating a distance signal that represents the distance between the sensor and the surface of the fuel in the fuel tank. A processor coupled to the transducer is programmed to convert the distance signal to a percentage of capacity signal, calculate the volume of fuel within the fuel tank, and create a message that includes information regarding the volume of fuel in the fuel tank. The processor is also coupled to a network that may include a dispatch terminal, a fuel optimization server and a fuel-price-by-location service. The network calculates an optimal location for refilling the fuel tank and a route to travel to the location. A message containing the refueling and route information is broadcast to the vehicle information system for the driver.
U.S. Pat. No. 6,078,850 to Kane et al. provides a management system for a vehicle having a commodity storage region and traveling along a path having a plurality of geographically-distributed commodity replenishing stations. The system includes a sensor for measuring a level of the commodity in the storage region and providing commodity level data. A global positioning system (GPS) determines a location of the vehicle along the path. A controller stores a record of current geographic locations of the commodity replenishing stations and current commodity prices thereat. The controller also calculates commodity replenishing schedules of the vehicle based on an output from the GPS and sensor, and a commodity price at some of the replenishing stations.